Pair-the-plan system for devices and method of use

ABSTRACT

A method and system are disclosed for connecting a device to subscriptions and cellular billing plans of separate users and for managing the concurrent use of the device by the separate users. A computer-implemented method comprises enrolling a device in a cellular subscription and billing plan of a user. The enrollment includes providing an identifier for the device to a cellular subscription, effectively adding the device to the cellular subscription and billing plan selected by the user. The method and system allows the user to use capabilities of the device as governed by the cellular subscription and an associated billing plan as selected by that user, while the device is also available for use by another user via another cellular billing plan, as selected by that user.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Under 35 USC 119(e), this application claims priority to U.S.provisional application Ser. No. 61/893,055, filed on Oct. 18, 2013.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to wireless services and moreparticularly to devices enabled for connectivity to cellular or otherwireless service and having more than one primary purpose and user.

BACKGROUND

There are many types of devices that are enabled for connectivity tocellular or other wireless services and that can fulfill multiplepurposes. One example is a vehicle with cellular connectivity; thevehicle Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) may enable thisconnectivity in the vehicle principally for the purpose of collectingdata from the vehicle related to vehicle performance. At the same time,the connectivity could have other purposes, such as deliveringinformation/entertainment (infotainment) content according to thepreferences of the consumer using the vehicle (such as an owner, lesseeor renter, referred to here for convenience as the “vehicle owner”), orallowing an insurance company to collect information about drivinghabits in order to offer discounts for those who drive safely. In theexample for infotainment, vehicle owners would probably not be willingto fund the cellular connectivity for the OEM to collect data from thevehicle related to vehicle performance. Similarly, OEMs would probablynot fund the cellular connectivity for vehicle owner's access toinfotainment or other data-intensive applications.

Another example of such a device is a tablet (e.g. Kindle Fire™) whichmay be used to purchase and download content from a primary provider(e.g. Amazon). The content provider for the tablet (referred to forconvenience as “the tablet content provider”) benefits from suchpurchases and therefore is willing to fund the connectivity as part ofthat purchase. However, the tablet can also be used by the person usingthe tablet (referred to here for convenience as the “tablet owner”) toaccess other content which is not provided by the tablet contentprovider, and the tablet content provider may prefer not to fund thecellular connectivity for this other content accessed by the tabletowner. As connectivity to cellular and other wireless services is notfree, it is desirable to separate the cost and control of theconnectivity depending on the user, directing traffic to the appropriateuser's service provider and subscription and billing plan.

Accordingly, what are needed are systems and methods to address theabove identified issues. The present invention addresses such a need.

SUMMARY

A method and system are disclosed for connecting a device to asubscription and cellular billing plan of a user. A computer-implementedmethod comprises enrolling a device in a cellular subscription andbilling plan of a user. The enrollment includes providing an identifierfor the device to a cellular subscription, effectively adding the deviceto the cellular subscription and billing plan selected by the user. Themethod and system allows the user to use capabilities of the device asgoverned by the cellular subscription and an associated billing plan asselected by that user, while the device is also available for use byanother user via another cellular billing plan, as selected by thatuser. By this means, the device is available to different users for thepurpose of their interest, but such usage is handled and billedseparately through connections to the subscriptions and billing planseach user has with its chosen service provider.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a tablet or a vehicle environment with multiple usersusing multiple subscription plans in accordance with an embodiment.

FIG. 2 illustrates a vehicle environment relating to a device withmultiple purposes in accordance with an embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a system in which a device (in thiscase, a vehicle) would operate in accordance with an embodiment.

FIG. 4a illustrates management of network registrations andauthorizations through different channels of communication post-pairing,in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4b illustrates management of network registrations andauthorizations through different channels of communication post-pairing,in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates a series of display screens depicting an example of avehicle pairing experience by a vehicle owner.

FIG. 6a is a process flow diagram illustrating one way in which themultiple-purpose device (in this case, in a vehicle) can be paired tocellular device subscription of the consumer using the solution embeddedin the device.

FIG. 6b is a flow diagram illustrating an example of different ways inwhich data may flow according to the policies of the user plans withwhich the device is paired.

FIG. 7a illustrates a way in which a device being used for enterpriseand consumer purposes simultaneously may access different providernetworks, in this case through use of different access point names (APN1 and APN 2) via a fourth generation (4G) cellular systems network.

FIG. 7b illustrates alternate access through Access Point Name 1 (APN 1)and Access Point Name 2 (APN 2) via a third generation (3G) cellularsystems network.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example of an interface for use/purpose basedbilling for multipurpose devices connected to multiple service providersproviding different data services to different users in accordance withan embodiment.

FIG. 9 illustrates a data processing system 900 suitable for storing thecomputer program product and/or executing program code relating to thechoices of the users in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates generally to wireless services and moreparticularly to devices enabled for connectivity to cellular or otherwireless service and having more than one primary purpose and user. Thefollowing description is presented to enable one of ordinary skill inthe art to make and use the invention and is provided in the context ofa patent application and its requirements. Various modifications to thepreferred embodiments and the generic principles and features describedherein will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. Thus, thepresent invention is not intended to be limited to the embodimentsshown, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with theprinciples and features described herein.

A multi-purpose device can be defined as a device which can be used formore than one purpose by one or more users where the purposes and theusers benefiting from the use may or may not be related to each other.In an embodiment, a multi-purpose device communicates with a cellular orother wireless service provider for one of its purposes to benefit oneof its users and is capable of receiving and transmitting informationover the provider's network. In addition, the device can be used foranother purpose benefiting the same or a different user also involvingcommunication with the same or a different provider of cellular or otherwireless services. The device could be an embedded mobile device such asa telematics unit in a vehicle, a tablet, a portable computer or anyportable device that has multiple purposes requiring the use of acellular or other wireless network, either generally or in a closedenvironment (such as a hospital, office building or hotel).

In an embodiment, a multi-purpose device has an enterprise user (anenterprise stakeholder) and a consumer user (a consumer stakeholder).The multi-purpose device utilizes a particular cellular or otherwireless provider for enterprise applications and purposes and suchusage is controlled and billed by the rules of the billing plan that theenterprise user has with the provider chosen by the enterprise user.Notwithstanding this association between the device and the provider andbilling subscription of the enterprise user, the device can also bepaired with a subscription and billing plan available to the consumerthrough a provider chosen by the consumer when used for applications andpurposes selected by the consumer. For these consumer-oriented uses, themulti-purpose device could be enrolled in the same billing plan (or in anew billing plan), and billed in the same manner, as any other cellularor wireless device used by that consumer and have access to one or moreservices (such as voice, data or SMS) available from the provider chosenby the consumer and supported by the consumer's subscription and thetechnical capabilities of the device. These services can be used toaccess such consumer-oriented uses as voice calls, messaging and addressbooks and other data services as well as infotainment (content orprogramming that combines information-based uses with entertainment),whether available generally to all wireless-enabled devices or usingspecialized hardware/software products and systems which are built into,or can be added to, devices, for example vehicle systems designed toenhance the user experience.

In another example, a multi-purpose device could be provided by ahospital, office building, manufacturing plant, hotel, or other providerfor a particular business need such as health monitoring, but could alsobe used to allow the current user to access other content. In each casedescribed, a single device has more than one purpose and more than oneuser or stakeholder. Stakeholders can be enterprises or consumers.

FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment where a device such as a vehicle'stelematics unit or a tablet reader is enrolled in one or more billingplans chosen by one or more enterprises and, at the same time, isenrolled in one or more billing plans chosen by one or more consumers.Enterprise1 104 is an enterprise stakeholder such as an automobileinsurance provider interested in tracking driving habits of one or moredrivers. Enterprise1 104 enrolls device 102 in the service providersubscription plan 112 selected by enterprise1 104. Similarly,enterprise2 106, another enterprise stakeholder, such as a vehicle OEMinterested in tracking vehicle and vehicle systems performance, enrollsdevice 102 in the service provider subscription plan 114 selected byenterprise2 106. When consumer1 108, as a consumer stakeholder, usesdevice 102 for his/her own purpose such as infotainment, he/she wouldlike to use his/her own subscription plan 116. Hence, consumer1 108would enroll device 102 in the service provider subscription plan 116selected by consumer1 108. Similarly, when consumer2 110, as anotherconsumer stakeholder, uses device 102 for his/her own purpose such asinfotainment, he/she would like to use his/her own subscription plan118. Hence, consumer2 110 would enroll device 102 in the serviceprovider subscription plan 118 selected by consumer2 110.

Although there are many environments in which use of a multi-purposedevice would be advantageous, a significant use case is the automotiveindustry. Typically, in an automotive environment, a telematics unitwithin a vehicle (often “under the hood” and not visible to the personoperating the vehicle) is used for communication. Automotive OEMs ormanufacturers of vehicle audio systems often allow for the audio devicein the vehicle to be connected, or paired, with the smart phone or othercellular-connected device (the “brought in phone”, or BIP) of theconsumer, such as vehicle owner or other user (a lessee of the vehicleor a passenger in the vehicle) as a way to economically provideinfotainment services such as streaming audio in the vehicle, bypassingthe telematics unit and ensuring that the cost of use remains with theconsumer.

The BIP solution requires complex pairing of the smartphone with thevehicle devices and systems. For pairing to work at all, the BIP must beconnected to the vehicle devices, so both BIP and vehicle devices mustsupport compatible connectivity methods. For the consumer services towork correctly in a specific driving session, the BIP must be presentand have sufficient battery, and the pairing must be refreshed, whichdoes not always happen automatically. In addition, there is nostandardization about where the system controls for the consumerservices will be presented (on a screen on the vehicle device or on thescreen of the BIP), which can lead to difficulties in operation anddistracted driving issues. Furthermore, the BIP and the vehicle systemsmust support compatible infotainment application software. Thesecapabilities must work across the range of consumer devicemanufacturers, operating systems, and applications. Finally, sincevehicles typically have lifespans of ten years or more, the vehicledevice must be able to pair with BIP devices that do not exist today orat the time of the design of the vehicle's systems, but will exist at adate sometime in the future. In practice, it is documented thatconsumers who upgrade smartphones and other connected devices frequentlyexperience issues pairing their BIP devices with vehicle devices.Compatibility issues and difficulty of use drive consumer and safetycomplaints about most BIP systems.

Vehicle original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are increasinglyincluding embedded cellular connectivity in vehicles for the purposes ofmonitoring and managing the vehicle and its component systems. Whilethese systems could be configured to allow use for consumer-orientedservices, and consumers would want to use the embedded connectivity ifit were available, neither the OEM nor the consumers want to pay for thecellular connectivity used for the other party's purposes (monitoringand managing the vehicle and its component systems for the OEM,infotainment or other “front seat” services for the consumer). What isneeded is a method for bypassing the BIP solution and allowing theconsumer to use their existing cellular data plan with the automotiveembedded device for consumer-oriented services. Such an invention willsave total cost, improve service, safety and consumer satisfaction,reduce complexities arising out of technological change and simplifybilling.

Allowing an embedded telematics device to be used for the purposes ofthe consumer and for the consumer to pay for that use according toconsumer's own subscription plan is currently not possible becausecurrent technology requires that the embedded device be assigned to asingle subscriber plan and wireless network, in this case the subscriberplan of the OEM and the OEM's cellular home network. These limitationsare eliminated by the present invention, which addresses the mutualdesires of OEMs and consumers to provide a safe, convenient way toenable dual use while assigning costs to the appropriate party throughtheir own subscription plans.

To describe the features of the present invention in more detail withinthe context of the automotive industry, refer to the accompanyingfigures in conjunction with the following discussions. These examplesare used for purpose of illustration only, and should not be construedas limitations.

FIG. 2 is a diagram that illustrates applications and interfaces insidethe vehicle 202 and outside the vehicle 204. Inside the vehicle comprisethe applications that are running inside the vehicle. There are avariety of elements inside the vehicle that can be accessed through theapplications running inside the vehicle. They include but are notlimited to an operating system, for example a Linux-based operatingsystem 224. In-vehicle native applications 206, in-vehicle Hyper TextMarkup Language (HTML) applications 210 and its associated HTML browser212, vehicle core service elements 208 all may also reside within thevehicle. The vehicle core elements could for example in an embodimentinclude a third party agent, 214, automotive systems 216, a navigationsystem 218, an audio graphic system 220 and storage and network elements222.

Outside of the vehicle are network application programming interfaces(APIs) that reside outside the vehicle. FIG. 2 illustrates outside thevehicle applications, for example, third party network APIs 226 thatinterface with network applications 228, browser applications 230 andmobile applications 232. There are also advertisers 234, payment 236 andan application store 238.

These elements are utilized together to allow the vehicle OEM to choosea cellular network provider to act as interface between the vehicle OEMand the vehicle. This cellular network provider is referred to as “theOEM's carrier.”

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a system in which a device (in thiscase, a vehicle) would operate in accordance with an embodiment. Thevehicle OEM 312 is always connected to the vehicle 300 via the OEM'scarrier 302 in a manufacturing state, state 0. When the vehicle 300 ispurchased, a consumer, in this case owner of the vehicle, can enroll hisor her vehicle 300 into his/her existing cellular plan as provided byhis/her cellular network provider referred to as “the vehicle owner'scarrier” 304.

After enrollment, as depicted by state 1, the vehicle's behavior ischanged so that 1) the vehicle 300 will connect to the consumer'scarrier depicted by vehicle owner's mobile network operator's preferredradio network (vehicle owner MNO PRN) 304 rather than the OEM's carrier302; and 2) two network traffic paths are established, one for the OEM'spurposes, the other for the vehicle owner's. The first network trafficpath is depicted by Access Point Name1 (APN 1) 306. This path isdirected to the OEM via the vehicle owner's carrier's radio accessnetwork (vehicle owner MNO) 304 and the OEM's carrier's core networkhome location register/home subscriber server (HLR/HSS) 310 to thevehicle manufacturer 312.

The interconnection between the vehicle owner's carrier 304 and theOEM's carrier 302 adheres to cellular network providers' interconnectionstandards. As a result, the vehicle OEM 312 is always connected to thevehicle 300. The second network traffic path is depicted by Access PointName 2 (APN 2) 308 provided to the vehicle owner's carrier 314 to accessother, typically infotainment, services 316. Applications in the vehicle300 can be mapped to either APN 1 306 to allow billing directly to OEM'splan or to APN 2 308 for billing to the vehicle owner's plan, dependingon which stakeholder uses the application.

The implementation depicted in FIG. 3 involves the management andupdating of the multi-purpose device's network parameters and resourcessuch as the International Mobile Subscriber Identifier (IMSI) or MobileDirectory Number (MDN), and the device Preferred Roaming List (PRL) orpublic land mobile network (PLMN). For example, the vehicle owner'scarrier 304 may assign a new international mobile subscriber identifier(IMSI) to the vehicle. The new IMSI assigned by the vehicle owner'scarrier will be used for all future authentications and dataflow, andold IMSI assigned by the OEM's carrier 302 remains as a back-up forvehicle OEM to access the vehicle related data in case of loss ofconnection through the new carrier or suspension or termination of thevehicle owner's account with the new carrier.

The HLR or HSS 310 of the OEM's carrier 302 may be utilized, as anembodiment, to manage the network registrations and authorizationspost-pairing as discussed below.

FIGS. 4a and 4b illustrate management of network registrations andauthorizations through different channels of communication post-pairing.FIG. 4a illustrates a preferred embodiment where HSS/HLR is maintainedby the “Pair The Plan” PTP host MNO 406 even after pairing, for example,authentication and location updates are done with PTP host MNO 406. Thisis accomplished by the vehicle owner MNO 408 redirecting theauthentication and location update traffic toward the PTP host MNO 406based on the IMSI. This continuing involvement of PTP host MNO 406 inmanaging data traffic provides various advantages such as maintainingany special features that the automotive OEM 410 requires to executefunctionalities of interest to it and better enabling additional and/orsubsequent pairings.

FIG. 4b illustrates another embodiment where management of networkregistrations and authorizations is transferred to the vehicle owner MNO408′ from PTP host MNO 406′ post-pairing, for example, authenticationand location updates are accomplished using vehicle owner MNO 408′. Todescribe an example of a pairing experience by both the consumer and thecellular plan provider in accordance with an embodiment refer now to thefollowing description in conjunction with the accompanying figures.

FIG. 5 illustrates a series of display screens depicting an example of apairing experience by the consumer, in accordance with an embodiment ofthe invention. Initially, the consumer will go to a “VehicleSubscription Pairing” screen 502 accessible via user settings. Theconsumer must enter an identification number, for example, a phonenumber of the primary device, typically a smartphone, associated withhis/her cellular subscription using a keypad or other input systemsimilar to that on screen 504. An application based on a server or inthe cloud will be triggered that will use the entered phone number toidentify the consumer's cellular network provider and subscription. Oncethe plan is identified, the eligibility of the subscription plan tosupport pairing with the vehicle is verified. If eligible, a requestrequiring verification that the consumer approves adding the vehicle totheir identified plan as a new device is sent to the consumer. In thisembodiment, the verification process is entering an activation code onscreen 506.

After successful verification by the consumer, a request is sent to theconsumer's cellular network provider to obtain new values of networkresources for the vehicle's telematics unit. These resources include,but are not limited to, the IMSI, Mobile Subscriber Integrated ServicesDigital Network-Number (MSISDN), and the APN to be used as APN 2 308 inFIG. 3.

Thereafter the consumer's cellular network provider will respond to therequest with new resource values. An over-the-air update to the vehicleis performed applying the resource values obtained from the consumer'scarrier. A confirmation text is then sent to the consumer's smartphone.Upon completion, additional message(s) may be provided confirming thatpairing has completed and/or reporting any pairing errors as shown byscreen 508 and screen 510.

FIG. 6a is a flow diagram illustrating the process of pairing thevehicle to the billing plan of the consumer's cellular subscription, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention. The consumer's cellularnetwork provider is referred to as “Cellular Provider,” 608 and theserver or cloud-based application is referred to as the “PTP server”604.

First, a request for pairing is initiated by the consumer to the PTPserver 604 via step 610. This initiation could be provided in a varietyof ways. For example, one, by providing either an MSISDN of a cellulardevice 606 of the vehicle owner and thus identifying MNO based onMSISDN, or two, by providing a MNO of the cellular device 606 of theconsumer. Next, the PTP server 604 sends a signal to the cellularprovider 608 to determine if the cellular device 606 is eligible forvehicle pairing by the cellular plan provider 608, by utilizing forexample the MSISDN, via step 612. If it is determined that the cellulardevice 606 is eligible, then a monthly cost may be provided to the PTPserver 604 and sent to the vehicle 602, via step 614. Next, a text isprovided to the cellular device to prevent fraud and make sure the useractually has possession of the cellular device, via step 616. The textmay say for example “Request has been made to pair vehicle XYZ with yourVZN mobile plan at cost of $10/month. If you wish to accept pairing,press <here>. We will then send you an activation code to complete thistransaction.” Upon receipt of the approval, the cellular plan providermay send an additional text to indicate completion of the enrollmentprocess, saying, for example, “Your activation code is: 12345”. Next,the consumer would enter the activation code, via step 618, to finishthe pairing activities by the consumer.

Pairing is then activated, for example, by obtaining the appropriateIMSI/MSISDN and the access point name (APN) from the cellular planprovider, via step 620. The vehicle is paired utilizing the IMSI/MSISDNand APN and a notification is displayed as “Vehicle pairing IMSI/MSISDNand APN”, via step 622. Pairing success may then be confirmed byvehicle, via step 624. Finally, the vehicle screen will display pairingsuccess to the owner of the cellular device, via step 626 and a text isreceived by the cellular device that indicates that the vehicle has beenpaired, via step 628. Thereafter, the cellular device used to performthe pairing is not required to be present in the vehicle for theconsumer-oriented services to be usable.

FIG. 6b illustrates the transmittal of information to and from thepaired vehicle device through two corresponding network traffic pathsidentified by the access point name (APN). Each path manages and chargesfor traffic according to the policies and the billing plan selected bycorresponding stakeholder. For example, as shown in FIG. 6b , APN 1provides under-the-hood and other driving-related data to the OEM step630 and APN 2 provides consumer-directed infotainment or other servicesto the consumer step 632.

Since the OEM is interested in monitoring under-the-hood and otherdriving-related data, the OEM will be charged for network trafficassociated with transmitting this data, according to its billing planstep 634. Similarly, since the consumer is interested in receivinginfotainment or other consumer-directed services and associated content,the consumer will be charged for traffic associated with theseconsumer-directed applications according to the rules and policies ofthe consumer's cellular subscription and associated billing plan step636.

FIG. 7a illustrates simultaneous access through APN 1 and APN 2 via afirst cellular network system, for example, a fourth generation (4G)network. The simultaneous access through both APN 1 706 and APN 2 708 ispossible due to the presence and simultaneous availability of two datapaths in a 4G network system, identified by APNs 706 and 708 (APN 1 andAPN 2).

FIG. 7b illustrates alternate access through APN 1 and APN 2 via asecond cellular network system, for example, a third generation (3G)network. In a 3G network system, only one data path is accessible at atime, so the vehicle 702′ must be able to alternate between the two datapaths identified by APN 1 706′ and APN 2 708′ according to thepriorities and requirements of the supported applications. Differentalgorithms can be used for determination of APN access by the vehicleduring different situations. For example, the algorithm could specify“if the vehicle is not in “ignition/aux on” then use APN 1; if thevehicle is in “ignition/aux on” then use APN 2 ”. The use of thisalgorithm can result in the OEM accessing its under-the-hood data viaAPN 1 706′ when the vehicle 702′ is not being used by the consumer, andthe consumer accessing its applications and data via APN 2 708′. Thisarrangement generally works well since many OEM uses for data are nottime-specific, allowing OEM 712′ to upload its under-the-hood data justafter the vehicle 702′ is turned off. However, the system can beconfigured to grant priority to non-consumer uses in specifiedsituations, such as in case of emergency; for example, the system canimmediately grant access to emergency communication, such as anautomatic call to 911 regarding an accident, by switching to APN 1 706′and terminating communications over APN 2 708′ for the duration of theemergency call.

FIG. 8 illustrates another embodiment where, in independenttransactions, a device such as a tablet or a vehicle is enrolled in oneor more billing plans chosen by one or more enterprise stakeholders andalso in one or more billing plans chosen by one or more consumers, suchas but not limited to an owner, user or a lessee of the tablet or thevehicle. Device 802 can be any device such as but not limited to atablet or a vehicle with a user interface for example, as described inFIG. 5. Enrolling the device 802 in different subscription plans asselected by different users, which can be any combination of one or moreenterprises and/or consumers, is carried out as described in FIG. 6a .Examples used are for purpose of illustration only, and should not beconstrued as limitations.

As illustrated in FIG. 8, OEM 804 is an enterprise that is interested inmonitoring equipment performance 816, enrolls device 802 in the serviceprovider subscription plan 812 selected by OEM 804. Consumer1 806 andconsumer2 808 are different users of the same device 802 who, inaddition to using the device for its principal purposes (e.g. in case ofvehicle, driving), would also use the device 802 for other purposes suchas infotainment depicted by phone 818, satellite TV 820, Pandora 822 andtraffic 824. When consumer1 806 uses the device 802 for his/her ownpurpose such as infotainment, he/she would use his/her own subscriptionplan. Consumer1 806 enrolls device 802 in the service providersubscription plan 810 selected by consumer1 806. Similarly, whenconsumer2 808 uses the device 802 for his/her own purpose such asinfotainment, he/she would use his/her own subscription plan.

Consumer2 808 enrolls device 802 in the service provider subscriptionplan 814 selected by consumer2 808. Furthermore, consumer1 806 andconsumer2 808 can choose which channel to use to get the content basedon their service provider subscription plan. For example, applicationsavailable through different communication channels, consumer can choosewhich communication channel to use e.g. YouTube through cellular networkas a communication channel is more expensive than internet as acommunication channel.

FIG. 9 illustrates a data processing system 900 suitable for storing thecomputer program product and/or executing program code in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention. The data processing system900 includes a processor 902 coupled to memory elements 904 a-b througha system bus 906. In other embodiments, the data processing system 900may include more than one processor and each processor may be coupleddirectly or indirectly to one or more memory elements through a systembus.

Memory elements 904 a-b can include local memory employed during actualexecution of the program code, bulk storage, and cache memories thatprovide temporary storage of at least some program code in order toreduce the number of times the code must be retrieved from bulk storageduring execution. As shown, input/output or I/O devices 908 a-b(including, but not limited to, keyboards, displays, pointing devices,etc.) are coupled to the data processing system 900. I/O devices 908 a-bmay be coupled to the data processing system 900 directly or indirectlythrough intervening I/O controllers (not shown).

In FIG. 9, a network adapter 910 is coupled to the data processingsystem 902 to enable data processing system 902 to become coupled toother data processing systems or remote printers or storage devicesthrough communication link 912. Communication link 912 can be a privateor public network. Modems, cable modems, and Ethernet cards are just afew of the currently available types of network adapters.

Embodiments described herein can take the form of an entirely hardwareimplementation, an entirely software implementation, or animplementation containing both hardware and software elements.Embodiments may be implemented in software, which includes, but is notlimited to, application software, firmware, resident software,microcode, etc.

The steps described herein may be implemented using any suitablecontroller or processor, and software application, which may be storedon any suitable storage location or computer-readable medium. Thesoftware application provides instructions that enable the processor tocause the receiver to perform the functions described herein.

Furthermore, embodiments may take the form of a computer program productaccessible from a computer-usable or computer-readable medium providingprogram code for use by or in connection with a computer or anyinstruction execution system. For the purposes of this description, acomputer-usable or computer-readable medium can be any apparatus thatcan contain, store, communicate, propagate, or transport the program foruse by or in connection with the instruction execution system,apparatus, or device.

The medium may be an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic,infrared, semiconductor system (or apparatus or device), or apropagation medium. Examples of a computer-readable medium include asemiconductor or solid state memory, magnetic tape, a removable computerdiskette, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), arigid magnetic disk, and an optical disk. Current examples of opticaldisks include digital versatile disk (DVD), compact disk-read-onlymemory (CD-ROM), and compact disk-read/write (CD-R/W).

Any theory, mechanism of operation, proof, or finding stated herein ismeant to further enhance understanding of the present invention and isnot intended to make the present invention in any way dependent uponsuch theory, mechanism of operation, proof, or finding. It should beunderstood that while the use of the word preferable, preferably orpreferred in the description above indicates that the feature sodescribed may be more desirable, it nonetheless may not be necessary andembodiments lacking the same may be contemplated as within the scope ofthe invention, that scope being defined by the claims that follow.

As used herein the terms device, appliance, terminal, remote device,wireless asset, etc. are intended to be inclusive, interchangeable,and/or synonymous with one another and other similar communication-basedequipment for purposes of the present invention though one willrecognize that functionally each may have unique characteristics,functions and/or operations which may be specific to its individualcapabilities and/or deployment.

Similarly, it is envisioned by the present invention that the termcommunications network includes communications across a network (such asthat of a M2M but not limited thereto) using one or more communicationarchitectures, methods, and networks, including but not limited to: CodeDivision Multiple Access (CDMA), Global System for Mobile Communications(GSM) (“GSM” is a trademark of the GSM Association), Universal MobileTelecommunications System (UMTS), Long Term Evolution (LTE), fourthgeneration cellular systems (4G) LTE, wireless local area network(WLAN), and one or more wired networks.

Although the present invention has been described in accordance with theembodiments shown, one of ordinary skill in the art will readilyrecognize that there could be variations to the embodiments and thosevariations would be within the spirit and scope of the presentinvention. Accordingly, many modifications may be made by one ofordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope ofthe present invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method comprising:enrolling a device enabled for connectivity to cellular or otherwireless service in a cellular service subscription of one or moreusers, wherein the enrollment includes providing an identifier for theenabled device to a cellular service subscription, effectively addingthe enabled device to the cellular service subscription; allowing asecond user to use capabilities of the enabled device as governed by thecellular service subscription and an associated billing plan of thesecond user through a cellular service provider chosen by the seconduser; and managing data flow through one or more data paths according toconnectivity parameters controlled by the cellular service provider andthe enabled device and according to usage requirements by a first userand the second user, while the enabled device is also available for useby the first user via another cellular service subscription and anassociated billing plan, as selected by the first user through acellular service provider chosen by the first user.
 2. Thecomputer-implemented method comprising: enrolling a device enabled forconnectivity to cellular or other wireless service in a cellularsubscription of one or more users, wherein the enrollment includesproviding an identifier for the enabled device to a cellularsubscription, effectively adding the enabled device to the cellularsubscription; allowing a second user to use capabilities of the enableddevice as governed by the cellular subscription and an associatedbilling plan of the second user, while the enabled device is alsoavailable for use by a first user via another cellular subscription andan associated billing plan, as selected by the first user; managing dataflow through one or more data paths according to connectivity parameterscontrolled by the cellular service provider and the enabled device andaccording to usage requirements by the first user and the second user;and allowing emergency access to emergency related data-flow to and fromthe enabled device by overriding data-flow management configurationunder non-emergency situation.
 3. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 1, wherein the one or more users comprise any of enterprise,consumer and a combination thereof.
 4. The computer-implemented methodof claim 1, wherein the enabled device identifier comprises any ofinternational mobile subscriber identification (IMSI), mobile directorynumber (MDN), mobile subscriber integrated services digital networknumber (MSISDN) and a combination thereof.
 5. A computer-implementedsystem comprising: a processor, and a memory in communication with theprocessor wherein the memory containing program instructions which whenexecuted by the processor, perform the following operations comprising:enrolling a device enabled for connectivity to cellular or otherwireless service in a cellular service subscription of one or moreusers, wherein the enrollment includes providing an identifier for theenabled device to a cellular service subscription, effectively addingthe enabled device to the cellular service subscription; allowing asecond user to use capabilities of the enabled device as governed by thecellular service subscription and an associated billing plan of thesecond user through a cellular service provider chosen by the seconduser; and managing data flow through one or more data paths according toconnectivity parameters controlled by the cellular service provider andthe enabled device and according to usage requirements by a first userand the second user, while the enabled device is also available for useby the first user via another cellular service subscription and anassociated billing plan, as selected by the first user through acellular service provider chosen by the first user.
 6. Thecomputer-implemented system comprising program instructions for:enrolling a device enabled for connectivity to cellular or otherwireless service in a cellular subscription of one or more users,wherein the enrollment includes providing an identifier for the enableddevice to a cellular subscription, effectively adding the enabled deviceto the cellular subscription; allowing a second user to use capabilitiesof the enabled device as governed by the cellular subscription and anassociated billing plan of the second user; while the enabled device isalso available for use by a first user via another cellular subscriptionand an associated billing plan, as selected by the first user; managingdata flow through one or more data paths according to connectivityparameters controlled by the cellular service provider and the enableddevice and according to usage requirements by the first user and thesecond user; and allowing emergency access to emergency relateddata-flow to and from the enabled device by overriding data-flowmanagement configuration under non-emergency situation.
 7. Thecomputer-implemented system of claim 5, wherein the one or more userscomprise any of enterprise, consumer and a combination thereof.
 8. Thecomputer-implemented system of claim 5, wherein the enabled deviceidentifier comprises any of international mobile subscriberidentification (IMSI), mobile directory number (MDN), mobile subscriberintegrated services digital network number (MSISDN) and a combinationthereof.
 9. A computer program product stored on a non-transitorycomputer readable medium for pairing a device with a cellular servicesubscription, comprising computer readable programming for causing acomputer to control execution of an application for pairing the devicewith a cellular service subscription comprising: enrolling a deviceenabled for connectivity to cellular or other wireless service in acellular service subscription of one or more users, wherein theenrollment includes providing an identifier for the enabled device to acellular service subscription, effectively adding the enabled device tothe cellular service subscription; allowing a second user to usecapabilities of the enabled device as governed by the cellular servicesubscription and an associated billing plan of the second user through acellular service provider chosen by the second user; and managing dataflow through one or more data paths according to connectivity parameterscontrolled by the cellular service provider and the enabled device andaccording to usage requirements by a first user and the second user,while the enabled device is also available for use by a first user viaanother cellular service subscription and an associated billing plan, asselected by the first user through a cellular service provider chosen bythe second user.
 10. A computer-implemented method comprising: enrollinga device enabled for connectivity to cellular or other wireless servicein at least one subscription of at least one network service provider byone or more users, wherein the enrollment includes providing anidentifier of the enabled device to the at least one network serviceprovider, effectively adding the enabled device to the at least onecellular service subscription; and managing data flow through one ormore data paths according to connectivity parameters controlled by thecellular service provider and the enabled device and according to usagerequirements by a first user and the second user, whereincharacteristics of interest to a first user of the enabled device areavailable to the first user via the at least one cellular servicesubscription and associated billing plan selected by the first userthrough a network service provider chosen by the first user, and whereinthe second user of the enabled device uses characteristics of interestas governed by the at least one cellular service subscription andassociated billing plan selected by the second user through a networkservice provider chosen by the second user.
 11. The computer-implementedmethod comprising: enrolling a device enabled for connectivity tocellular or other wireless service in at least one subscription of atleast one network service provider by one or more users, wherein theenrollment includes providing an identifier of the enabled device to theat least one network service provider, effectively adding the enableddevice to the at least one subscription, wherein characteristics ofinterest to a first user of the enabled device are available to thefirst user via the at least one subscription and associated billing planselected by the first user, and wherein a second user of the enableddevice uses characteristics of interest as governed by the at least onesubscription and associated billing plan selected by the second user;managing data flow through one or more data paths according toconnectivity parameters controlled by the data service provider and theenabled device and according to usage requirements by the first user andthe second user; and allowing emergency access to emergency relateddata-flow to and from the enabled device by overriding data-flowmanagement configuration under non-emergency situation.
 12. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 10, wherein the one or more userscomprise any of enterprise, consumer and a combination thereof.
 13. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 10, wherein the network serviceprovider comprises any of cellular service provider, internet serviceprovider and a combination thereof.
 14. The computer-implemented methodof claim 10, wherein the enabled device identifier comprises any ofinternational mobile subscriber identification (IMSI), mobile directorynumber (MDN), mobile subscriber integrated services digital networknumber (MSISDN) and a combination thereof.
 15. A computer-implementedsystem comprising: a processor, and a memory in communication with theprocessor wherein the memory containing program instructions which whenexecuted by the processor, perform the following operations comprising:enrolling a device enabled for connectivity to cellular or otherwireless service in at least one cellular service subscription of atleast one network service provider by one or more users, wherein theenrollment includes providing an identifier of the enabled device to theat least one network service provider, effectively adding the enableddevice to the at least one cellular service subscription; and managingdata flow through one or more data paths according to connectivityparameters controlled by the cellular service provider and the enableddevice and according to usage requirements by a first user and thesecond user, wherein characteristics of interest to the first user ofthe enabled device are available to the first user via the at least onecellular service subscription and associated billing plan selected bythe first user through a network service provider chosen by the firstuser, and wherein the second user of the enabled device usescharacteristics of interest as governed by the at least one cellularservice subscription and associated billing plan selected by the seconduser through a network service provider chosen by the second user.
 16. Acomputer-implemented system comprising program instructions for:enrolling a device enabled for connectivity to cellular or otherwireless service in at least one subscription of at least one networkservice provider by one or more users, wherein the enrollment includesproviding an identifier of the enabled device to the at least onenetwork service provider, effectively adding the enabled device to theat least one subscription, wherein characteristics of interest to afirst user of the enabled device are available to the first user via theat least one subscription and associated billing plan selected by thefirst user, and wherein a second user of the enabled device usescharacteristics of interest as governed by the at least one subscriptionand associated billing plan selected by the second user; managing dataflow through one or more data paths according to connectivity parameterscontrolled by the data service provider and the enabled device andaccording to usage requirements by the first user and the second user;and allowing emergency access to emergency related data-flow to and fromthe enabled device by overriding data-flow management configurationunder non-emergency situation.
 17. The computer-implemented system ofclaim 15, wherein the one or more users comprise any of enterprise,consumer and a combination thereof.
 18. The computer-implemented systemof claim 15, wherein the network service provider comprises any ofcellular service provider, internet service provider and a combinationthereof.
 19. The computer-implemented system of claim 15, wherein theenabled device identifier comprises any of international mobilesubscriber identification (IMSI), mobile directory number (MDN), mobilesubscriber integrated services digital network number (MSISDN) and acombination thereof.
 20. A computer program product stored on anon-transitory computer readable medium for buying and selling cellularservice, comprising computer readable programming for causing a computerto control an execution of an application for buying and sellingcellular services comprising: enrolling a device enabled forconnectivity to cellular or other wireless service in at least onecellular service subscription of at least one network service providerby one or more users, wherein the enrollment includes providing anidentifier of the enabled device to the at least one network serviceprovider, effectively adding the enabled device to the at least onecellular service subscription; and managing data flow through one ormore data paths according to connectivity parameters controlled by thecellular service provider and the enabled device and according to usagerequirements by a first user and the second user, whereincharacteristics of interest to a first user of the enabled device areavailable to the first user via the at least one cellular servicesubscription and associated billing plan selected by the first userthrough a network service provider chosen by the first user, and whereinthe second user of the enabled device uses characteristics of interestas governed by the at least one cellular service subscription andassociated billing plan selected by the second user through a networkservice provider chosen by the second user.